


If We Were a Storm

by NeverAndAlways



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued, Arguing, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Romance, Eventual Sex, Friends to Lovers, Gen, I'm Sorry, M/M, Mpreg, Off-screen Relationship(s), Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pre-Slash, Prompt Fic, mostly off-screen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-29
Updated: 2015-10-18
Packaged: 2018-04-01 18:54:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 9,296
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4030879
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NeverAndAlways/pseuds/NeverAndAlways
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>'If we were a storm, you'd be thunder and I'd be lightning.<br/>When it rains we'll always be close to each other. You can see me and I can hear you.<br/>When it's raining at two-fourty-six in the morning, you wake up because of the sound of rain and out of nowhere, your room lights up from your window. Just for that brief moment, you are surrounded by me. Moments later I hear thunder crack and I know it's you proclaiming your love for me.<br/>You're my thunder and I'm your lightning.'</p><p>- Unknown</p><p>(request for caramel0v. Hope you like it!)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

  * For [](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts).



Steve is not drunk.

He might be the only one. It's nice, though; no one bothers him. He has space to think. He's sitting at the bar, his back to the room, holding a glass of beer. Occasionally he takes a sip. After eating at that shwarma restaurant, someone suggested they go out for drinks and, well, here they all are. They've been here for hours. He's so tired. Tired and grimy and sore and covered in other people's blood. All he wants to do is go home and take a shower and sleep for ages, but at the same time, maybe awake is better. While he's awake, the Chitauri are still dead.

He glances over his shoulder. Through the thick air of the bar, he can see that some of the other Avengers are still there- Barton and Romanov are huddled at a corner table, talking in hushed tones over empty glasses; Dr. Banner is sitting next to Agent Hill, both staring into their respective drinks; Stark is trying to be suave at a disinterested young woman, and Thor...where's Thor?

"Steven! There you are!!" a voice behind him bellows, and a massive hand thumps on his shoulder. He sighs. Speak of the devil...

"Hello, Thor." Steve turns around and gets a face-full of beer breath for his trouble. Thor has clearly had a **lot** to drink. 

The red-faced Asgardian grins broadly down at him. "Why do you hide?" he rumbles amiably. "We fought well, our enemy has been vanquished! We must celebrate!!"

You've done enough celebrating for all of us and then some, thinks Steve. And you won't even be hungover tomorrow. "Thanks, but I'm...I'm tired." he puts on as much of a smile as he can manage.

"Nonsense! You cannot be tired, after such a glorious battle! Come, you..you must join us!" Thor hooks one hand under Steve's arm and tries to lift him up from his seat, but even keeping himself upright seems to take a lot of effort. It doesn't take much for Steve to weasel out of his grasp.

"Please don't." Steve pulls his arm away. Maybe he was sharper than intended, because Thor looks pulls away with a look of unsteady concern.

"I am sorry, I meant no offense-" he begins, but Steve waves him into silence.

"None taken. I just- I haven't slept in days, and I just want to drink my beer. Alone."

Now Thor nods respectfully. "I understand. I will leave you in peace." with one last friendly thump on the shoulder, he retreats. Steve sighs again and turns back to his beer. He can deal with a lot of things- Tony Stark, the 21st century -but Thor is not one of them. He's nice enough, sure, and a good fighter, but he's just...he's too much. Way too much. He's big and he's loud and he's boisterous and he doesn't stop. Even now, when he's just been fighting against his own brother. He'll be going back to Asgard soon, with Loki, and part of Steve hopes he'll stay there. He wonders what Bucky would have though of the guy.

"Hey Capsicle, you still here?"

Steve looks over his shoulder again. This time it's Stark. He's less drunk than Thor, but also looks like he's had a few. He grins. "Thought you'd've left by now."

"What, and miss the party?" Steve smirks.

"You call this partying?" Tony gestures at Steve and his glass.

"It's as close as I'm going to get."

"Well, for an old guy, it's pretty good, huh?"

Steve tries not to roll his eyes at this. He waits until Stark has wandered away before putting his head in his hands. If he has to put up one with one more joke...scattered laughter breaks out behind him. Then Stark's voice explodes into a loud, off-key rendition of 'Bohemian Rhapsody', several other voices join in, and Steve has had enough. He drains his glass, stands up, and wades through the noisy room, past Thor and Tony, who are too involved in singing to notice, around Barton and Romanov's table to the door. Slipping outside, he pauses for a few deep breaths. His ribs hurt- he probably cracked one or two -but the night air is cool, and it clears his head. He steps over a broken chunk of concrete and begins the long walk home.

oOOo


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this is so late, caramel0v. I hope you like it, and I promise the next chapter won't take as long!

The two months Thor spends in Asgard are lovely. It's PEACEFUL. For once, the Tower is relatively quiet; Steve gets things done. He could get used to this. In fact, he thinks, if Thor never came back, he wouldn't mind at all.

He does come back, of course, like a bad penny, and he's as loud as ever. Steve avoids him. Not the nicest thing to do, but he does it anyway, and it works. For a while. A few days after Thor's return, the whole team is called in to be debriefed on an upcoming mission - and guess who's seated next to Steve? Yep. Steve is polite throughout the meeting; he answers questions, and doesn't even wince when Thor thumps him on the back. But 'nice' has its limits.

"Steven? I wish to speak with you."

Steve lets himself be pulled aside outside the conference room. "What d'you need?"

Thor studies his face for a moment. "You have been avoiding me."

Damn. He'd noticed. "Have I? I- I didn't realize- I mean, it wasn't intentional. I've just been busy."

Thor's expression darkens. "I do not like being lied to. You have avoided me since my return, and when we do speak, you are irritable. Why is this?"

"It's...it's a personal matter." well, technically that's true.

"Can I be of help?" Thor offers.

Only if you go away. "You know, Thor, when people say 'it's personal', it usually means they don't want to talk about it." Steve's patience is wearing a little thin.

"I apologize, I only meant-"

"Why do you want to know so badly, anyway?"

"If I have done something to offend or anger you, I wish to know so that I can make amends."

"This might come as a surprise, but it's not always about you, Thor. And it's not always your business to know." Steve doesn't know where these words are coming from, but he doesn't try to stop them.

"I thought there would be no harm in asking-"

"Well, you were wrong." where is this anger even coming from? "You don't belong here any more than I do. In fact, you-" no. That's enough. Steve stops, takes a few breaths. "You know what? Forget it. Just leave me alone, and we'll call it even. Excuse me-" with that, Steve brushes past Thor and hurries away. He's going straight to the gym; he needs to hit something.

Thor watches him go. He's both angry and confused, which is a bad combination. There's a presence behind him; Fury.

"Something wrong, Odinson?"

"Yes." although he'd be hard-pressed to say what it was, exactly. Fury makes a thoughtful noise.

"Well, you'd better solve it soon. This is a tough mission, especially with Barton staying behind, and I need all of you working as a team."

Thor nods. "Of course." he can be civil if Steve can.

-

They're shipped out the next day. The plan is simple enough: find the HYDRA base and take it down. The problem is, it's in the middle of a rainforest. And they have only a general idea of where it is.

As luck would have it, Steve and Thor end up in the same jet on the way there. They don't pay much attention to each other for most of the flight - Thor is up front, chatting with Tony, and everyone else is doing their own thing. However, when they pass the six-hour mark, everyone starts getting a little antsy. Steve wakes up from a short catnap to find Thor beside him, humming and polishing Mjolnir. He turns over a moment too late; the humming abruptly stops.

"Did I wake you? My apologies."

"No...couldn't sleep anyway." Steve sits up. "How much longer did Tony say it would be?"

"I do not know. Soon, with any luck; the others are restless. We have been in the air too long."

"Mm."

Across the cabin, Natasha says something and Tony lets out a bark of laughter. The engines roar in the background. "Since you are awake..." Thor ventures, "may I ask a personal question?"

"Shoot."

"What...?"

"Means 'go ahead'."

"Ah." Thor takes a deep breath. "Yesterday, after meeting with Fury, you seemed...agitated. I will not ask again, but if I somehow provoked your anger, I wish you would tell me."

Steve hesitates. He hates lying through his teeth like this, but telling the truth would be worse. "It wasn't you, Thor. I just...I was tired, and I didn't have much patience. I shouldn't have snapped at you, I'm sorry. But right now, let's just focus on the mission."

"No need to apologize, my friend!" Thor grins. "You are right - let us speak no more about it." he stands up and lopes away to join Natasha and Bruce, and Steve sighs with relief. Maybe now the guy will leave him alone.

-

Natasha goes in first when they land. That's standard procedure- gives them a chance to get a look at things without being seen. But she's gone barely five minutes before the call comes in that they need the Hulk. Apparently they were closer than they thought. Hulk gets a minute's head-start before everyone else comes in to finish the job, and do they ever hit the ground running then. It's like disturbing an anthill: it seems every HYDRA agent in the place has come out to fight.

The Avengers disperse quickly. Natasha weaves in and out, sometimes shooting, sometimes fighting hand-to-hand; Tony works on herding the HYDRA agents, keeping them from scattering into the forest; and Steve and Thor take down as many agents as they can get to while Hulk takes care of the building itself. It's tough not having Clint there, and it takes them a while to get their feet under them, but they manage. Tony quips his way through the fight as always.

"Hey, what d'you wanna bet Barton's faking being sick to dodge this mission?"

Steve takes out a HYDRA agent with a kick to the knees and a good whack with his shield. "Stark, could you please focus?"

"Can no one take a joke around here?" Tony yelps suddenly and swears into his headset.

"Language...!"

"Heads up, Cap, here's a few headed your way!"

Steve looks up just in time to see a group of HYDRA agents running full-tilt in his direction. There's about seven, maybe more; not bad odds. He sends one hurtling against a tree and is just turning around to take on the others when a lightning bolt hits. It takes out one agent; Mjolnir takes care of the rest. Thor lands with a THUD in front of Steve.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, why did you-"

"Good." Thor takes off again, leaving Steve dumbfounded and seriously annoyed for the rest of the fight.

-

They're back in the jet now, mission accomplished. Everyone is exhausted and grimy; Bruce is huddled at the back under a blanket, fast asleep. And Steve is still mad. He stands before Thor, arms folded, and waits for him to look up. When he does, his brow furrows.

"Is something the matter?"

"What the hell was that for?"

"I do not understand."

"I could have handled that group on my own. There was no reason for you to jump in."

"I thought you were outnumbered."

"That doesn't mean I couldn't handle it. We were all outnumbered, Thor, it's practically part of the job."

"I would have done the same for anyone, Steven. The battle is over; put away your weapons." he nods to the empty space beside him. Steve sits, and they're quiet for a minute or two. He starts to explain, but Thor silences him with a gesture. "Your sharp tongue is as much a weapon as your shield." he says gently, half-joking. Steve gets the message. They sit for the rest of the trip in companionable - or at east civil - silence.

oOo


	3. Chapter 3

"Checkmate."

Bruce sits back and grins. He's positively smug. Steve sputters.

"Wh- how did you-?"

"Give it up, old man." calls Tony. "Bruce is the champ 'round these parts."

"Never." Steve rescues his remaining checkers, and they reset the board. "Best two out of three."

"You sure you want to lose again, Captain?"

"Who says I'll lose?"

Thor walks by with a bowl of popcorn. "In battle, sometimes surrender is the wisest choice." he intones.

"You want to play instead?"

"No, I have learned my lesson."

"Chicken." says Bruce over his shoulder. He makes his first move, then nods to Steve. "Your turn."

"Good luuuuck." Tony again.

"Quiet, Stark." Steve stares hard at the board. Checkers requires patience, strategy. In some ways, it's not unlike combat; you have to know when to make your move. He folds his arms and thinks. In the background, he can hear Natasha's opera playing softly, and Thor and Tony are debating the finer points of whatever movie they're watching. He thinks some more. Finally he makes a play, just as the game room door swings open. It's Barton. He looks a little pale, and walks as though he's trying to hold himself together through sheer force of will. Natasha goes to meet him.

"You look awful." she says, deadpan as always, but with a gentleness she reserves only for him. He snorts.

"Thanks." as they walk past Bruce and Steve's table, he pauses to contemplate the checkerboard. He taps one of Steve's pieces. "You're gonna lose that in a few moves. Need a better defense." he says placidly, and moves on, leaving an indignant Steve in his wake.

"You must be feeling better." Natasha observes.

"Getting there. Not throwing up constantly, but still...eh." he shrugs. "What'd I miss?" Natasha sinks into a papasan chair, and Clint drapes himself over a recliner. Tony, having caught wind of their conversation, leans over the back of the sofa and chimes in.

"Nothing huge. Pretty routine mission. Go in, take down a couple dozen HYDRA agents, the big guy over there does some demolition, and we all go home. Easy. Didn't even know you were gone, Legolas."

"Hm. Maybe I should go MIA more often." says Clint. Natasha aims a playful kick to his knee.

"Hey, just because you're pregnant-"

"Nat!" Clint hisses and gestures frantically for her to shush, but it's too late. Tony's eyebrows are nearly up to his hairline, Thor is beaming, and even Bruce and Steve have paused their game to look back at him. He sighs. "...thanks a lot, Nat."

"I'm sorry, I assumed you'd told them."

"Did she just say what I think she said, Barton?" Tony pries.

"Yes."

"You've got a bun in the oven??"

" **Yes**."

"Well, well. I guess now we know what Agent Coulson does on his days off." Tony smirks, and Clint scowls.

"Stark..." sighs Natasha.

"What?"

"This is most wonderful news, Barton!" Thor rumbles. "Has the son of Coul been informed?"

"Well, yeah. He was the first one I told."

Now Bruce chimes in. "You know what this means, though, right?"

"Besides the obvious...?"

"It means we're short one person for a whole year. We won't have our sniper."

"Well, I wasn't exactly planning on getting knocked up...and it sounds like you're doing just fine without me, so far." Clint shifts a little and puts a hand to his stomach. 

"That's not really the point-"

Whatever the point is, Bruce never gets there: Clint suddenly levitates off his chair, looking distinctly green, and hightails it out of the room. They watch him go. Natasha's opera is still playing; the opening verse of an aria makes a bizarre backdrop to the scene.

"He sure knows how to have fun." says Tony thoughtfully. Steve stands up, bumping his knee on the table and dislodging a few checkers as he goes.

"I'm going to go check on him."

Bruce scoots the checkers back into place. "Don't you want to finish the game...?"

"Not really. I think we both know who's going to win."

-

Later, in the dining hall, Steve runs into Tony and Thor again. They're on opposite sides of a table, still discussing their movie over their stone-cold dinners. Steve approaches and clears his throat politely. "Is this seat taken?"

The critics both startle as though they'd forgotten the outside world existed. "No. No, go ahead." Tony stands up. "I'm, uh...I was just about to get some more soup, actually." he picks up his bowl - which, Steve notices, is still full - and ambles away. Steve takes a seat.

"Sounds like you two have quite a debate going." he says as he starts on his dinner.

Thor looks up from his drumstick. "We do indeed."

"What's it about?"

"Jurassic Park."

"The movie?"

"Yes. Anthony showed it to me. He believes that such a park would be extremely dangerous; I think it would be a marvelous idea! In my youth, my brother and I hunted creatures much like those in the film."

Steve wants to point out that there's a difference between fantasy and reality (and that, for once, he agrees with Stark), but he knows it would be lost on Thor. So he silences the thought with a bite of pasta. Snippets of conversation float around the dining hall, so tangled up in each other that they hardly sound like words at all. It reminds him a little of the army mess hall.

"What did you think of the news today?" Thor suddenly asks. It takes Steve a moment to snap out of his reminiscing.

"What, Barton's? It's, uh...it's great. I'm happy for him."

"You do not sound very happy."

Steve thinks for a moment. "I guess I'm a little culture-shocked...in my time, male carriers weren't exactly celebrated. If a man had a baby, only his partner and immediate family knew about it. Sometimes only his partner."

"In Asgard, every birth is celebrated. Regardless of who carries the child."

"Yeah, well..." Steve lowers his voice. "I've only ever known four carriers. Including myself."

"You are-?"

"Yes. And you can't tell anyone that."

Thor draws himself up tall. "You have my word. Who were the others?"

"One is Barton. The others are - were - my friend Bucky, and a corporal in my squad. The corporal got pregnant, and vanished a few weeks later; apparently he resigned, but we never heard from him again." Steve pauses to let his words sink in before continuing. "The point is, I'm not used to talking about it openly. In my time, Barton would've been packing his bags by now."

Thor looks solemnly down at his plate. He seems to have lost his appetite, which is a rare thing. "The people of your world treat each other so strangely." he says, almost to himself.

"You're telling me."

"But times are changing," Thor adds, a little brighter now. "for the better. Barton and Son of Coul can have their child in peace. And perhaps you will have a child of your own someday."

Steve freezes. Being a carrier had always been just an uncomfortable secret...he'd never really considered actually having a baby, starting a family. Maybe because being a soldier didn't allow it. But either way, this is something he'd rather not talk about. Old habits and all that. He stands up abruptly, startling Thor.

"Where are you going?"

"I have some work I need to finish for tomorrow." lying through his teeth again. Damn. But Thor seems to accept it; he bids Steve goodnight and lets him go.

Steve runs into Tony again on the way out. He'd relocated to another table, the liar. He looks a little sheepish as Steve approaches. "Leaving already?" he asks mildly.

"Finished my dinner, and I have some work to do for tomorrow." the lie is a little easier the second time around. "For the record, Stark- I'm on your side. Jurassic Park is a terrible idea."

"Oh, totally." Tony grins mischeviously. "Bringing dinosaurs back- you'd think they'd've learned their lesson with you."

Steve nearly does hit him for that one.

 

oOo


	4. Chapter 4

Steve walks out of Fury's office into the hall. Barely an hour back from his mission, and he's already been debriefed and questioned and given another assignment. And all without even unpacking his bags. He slings his duffelbag over his shoulder. First things first: time for a shower.

He's halfway down the hall when Coulson comes out of a side door. And of course, they run right into each other. Coulson's clipboard falls, scattering paper everywhere; Steve's duffel bag makes such a THUD you'd think he was carrying bricks. One of them swears.

"I'm so sorry, sir, I didn't see you-"

"Not a problem, Rogers." Coulson, calm as ever, stoops to collect his papers. Steve tries to pick one up and nearly gets his hand swatted. "Uh-uh. Confidential." so he stands aside - he knows better than to mess with Coulson - and tries to fill the silence.

"So...how's Barton- er, Clint?" seems like a safe place to start.

This gets a smile out of Coulson. "I take it you've heard the news."

"Uh, yeah."

"Mm. Clint's doing well. Getting toward five months."

"Wow, didn't think I'd been away that long." Steve hoists a smile. Small talk is awkward already, and he still isn't used to talking openly about this subject. He has to think for a moment. What do people usually say in this situation? "Do, uh...have you found out the gender?"

"I'll let him tell you that one." Coulson gives Steve a sly look over his clipboard. Apparently a wall has been reached; Agents rarely let their guard down all the way. He neatly shuffles his paperwork into order and puts it back in the clipboard. "Where you headed?"

"To my apartment."

"See if you can find the big guy on your way there. Word is, no one's seen him for a day or two."

The big guy? "Banner...?"

Coulson laughs. "Thor. Banner's in his lab, last I heard; I think we'd know if the 'other guy' showed up."

...right. "How do you know Thor's not on assignment? Or in Asgard?"

" **That** I would definitely know about." Coulson gives Steve a gentle clap on the shoulder as he walks away. "Let me know if you find him."

-

Steve can't help grumbling a little as he walks. All he wants is a shower and five minutes to himself; is that too much to ask? And why can't Coulson go looking for Thor, if he's worried? It's pretty much his job to know where everyone is.

...On the other hand, Steve, you could have said no.

Thor's apartment seems like the best place to start. He goes there first. He has to knock several times to get an answer; that's the first clue that something's wrong. Usually Thor's rumbling a welcome at the first knock. When the door finally opens, Steve has to take a step back out of sheer surprise: Thor looks awful. Flushed face, red, watery eyes, runny nose...no wonder no one's seen him.

"Steben!" he sniffs. He even **sounds** contagious. 

"Are you okay?" Steve is already regretting this.

"No. Please, come in-" he takes Steve by the arm and hauls him through the door, duffel bag and all. The bag falls to the floor - again - as Thor spins around to face him. "Steben." he says again, looking as solemn as one can be with such a runny nose. "You are by friend, yes?"

"...Yes...?" well, not exactly, but it seems like the right answer.

"There is something I bust tell you-" he pauses to sniff loudly. It only adds to the bizarre drama. "I ab dying, Steben."

To his credit, Steve's first reaction is alarm and a rush of gethimtoMedicalNOW. But then he looks at Thor again, standing there looking so distressed, and remembers something: Bucky used to do the same thing when he was sick. The bigger they are, the harder they fall...he knows how to deal with this.

"You aren't dying, Thor." he sighs. "You've probably just got a cold."

Thor looks almost offended. "Asgardians do not succumb to sickness."

"Not in Asgard, maybe. But you can't defend against something you've never dealt with before." he walks toward Thor as he talks, herding him toward his room. "You just need to rest."

"But-"

"BED."

-

It takes a few minutes before Thor surrenders and goes to bed. He's exactly like Bucky: won't hold still, even when he's sick. But it's way more awkward with Thor. Steve and Bucky were friends - best friends. They knew each other well enough to be comfortable with that sort of thing. He and Thor are...well, he doesn't even know what their relationship is. They don't hate each other and they're more than acquaintances, but they're not quite friends either...regardless, it's awkward.

Steve makes Thor promise to actually rest, reassures him that he's not going to die, and finally turns to leave. He's stopped by a hand on his arm. "Steben, wait."

He tries not to roll his eyes. "What?"

"Stay. Please."

Steve turns around. He's all ready to say no - he just wants a shower, and his bed is calling him. But Thor looks so genuinely scared that he finds himself saying yes instead. Thor smiles blearily, mutters something about him being a good friend, and promptly falls asleep, leaving Steve more or less alone. In an apartment that isn't his.

Now what?

Well, first things first: in lieu of a shower, he goes and washes his face at the sink. That feels a bit better, at least. Then he makes himself some tea (and leaves a mug out for Thor just in case), putters around a bit, and finally scrounges up paper and a pen and sits down to draw. It's been a while. The feeling of the pen in his hand is familiar, though, like coming back to an old friend. He draws whatever comes to mind - monsters, parts of the apartment, anything and everything. He fills up page after page until he can't keep his eyes open anymore.

-

The next morning, he's awakened by Thor rattling around in the kitchen. He sits bolt upright, disoriented. Where-?

"Good mornig, Steben."

...oh, right. Steve tries to rub the sleep from his eyes. The toaster goes off; a few moments later, Thor shuffles in with something on a plate. He sits down and offers it to Steve.

"Popping tarts."

Might as well be polite, thinks Steve. And he IS hungry. He takes one of the pastries - if you can call it that - and nibbles a corner. Good god, it's sweet. They eat in companionable silence for a while. Then Thor sniffles and half-turns to Steve.

"I saw your drawigs."

Steve freezes. He left the drawings out. He swallows past the lump in his throat. "And...?" the word comes out as more of a squeak. He doesn't know what he's expecting in response, but it sure wasn't the smile that lights up Thor's face.

"They are beautiful. You are a very talented man." even with the cold-induced nasal twang, Thor's words are kind. Steve looks away; his face is burning. It's just a hobby, he never really- his gaze falls on a clock on the far wall. Oh god, is that the time? He springs up from the couch, downing the last of his poptart. "Is somethig wrong, Steben?" Thor goes to stand up as well.

"I was supposed to report to Agent Hill fifteen minutes ago." Steve runs his fingers through his hair in a desperate attempt to make it behave, then runs for the door.

"Steben, you-"

"I'll be back!"

The door slams. "...forgot your bag." oh well. Thor drops it back on the floor and retreats to the couch to finish his poptart.

oOo 


	5. Chapter 5

Steve makes it to Agent Hill's office in three minutes flat. She looks sedately up from her computer screen.

"It's not like you to be late, Rogers."

"I know," Steve says, between panting breaths, "I'm very sorry. I was with Thor, I overslept-"

Agent Hill arches one perfectly-penciled eyebrow. Steve backpedals frantically. "I mean- he's sick, I was staying with him and I slept on the couch-" there's no way to make this sound better. He charges on. "Anyway. I'm sorry I'm late; it won't happen again." he slides into a chair. "What did you need to talk about?"

"Your next mission."

"With all due respect, ma'am, Director Fury already debriefed me on-"

"Not all of it. Remember that HYDRA stronghold the Avengers took down a few months ago? We're still getting reports of activity in that area."

"But that shouldn't be possible, there's nothing left of it."

"Nothing above ground. But survey drones found a whole network of passages underneath the original building." Agent Hill turns her computer screen around; on it is a sonar image, just a tangle of lines. "This is huge."

Steve studies the image. "What were they doing there?"

"That's what we need you guys to find out. You're being shipped out in two days' time; we want you to get in there, figure out what's going on, and shut it down."

"Understood." sounds like a pretty typical mission. He could do without the added mystery, though; he likes know what he's getting into beforehand. Agent Hill turns her computer back and folds her hands on the desk, signalling the end of the meeting. Steve stands up.

"Any questions?"

"No, ma'am."

She nods curtly. "Then you're dismissed."

-

Steve's little apartment has never been a more welcome sight. Maybe now he can finally get a shower. And some food.

His uniform is so grimy, he's tempted to drop it and see if it'll stand on its own (he does. It doesn't. But it does leave a ring of dust on the floor). He turns on the water and climbs into the shower, and oh, it's wonderful. For several minutes, all he does is stand there and let the hot water cascade over him. Then he scrubs and scrubs until the water turns cold. It's lovely, when you think about it, to be able to do that...his fingers are pruny by the time he gets out.

He's still towelling his hair dry, enjoying the solitude and the quiet, when he realizes his doorbell is ringing. For a moment he hesitates. But when it rings again, more urgently, he sighs, wraps a towel around himself, and goes to answer it. No, he doesn't need any time alone. Why should he?

The doorbell rings yet again. "I'm coming, I'm coming." he grumbles. "Keep your shirt on." it's probably Coulson, or another Agent. Holding onto the towel with one hand, he unlocks and opens the door - and it's not Coulson.

It's Thor.

A few seconds pass while the two just stare at each other. Steve has never seen anyone so red in the face, and he's probably just as bad. He is acutely, uncomfortably aware of just how little he's wearing, but...maybe that's not the only thing. There's something in Thor's expression that he can't quite identify, and he's not sure he wants to. They don't meet each other's eyes. "Can...can I help you?"

Thor wordlessly holds out Steve's duffel bag. He's red all the way to his ears. "You left this in my quarters."

"Oh. Thank you." he takes it. There's another awkward silence. C'mon Steve, say something. "You, uh...you've heard about the new mission?"

"Yes." there's that familiar spark in Thor's eye, and that fierce grin he always gets before a mission. "And we shall be victorious!"

"Indeed." Steve can't help but grin. Some of the ice has been broken. Still keeping a tight grip on his towel, he shuffles his bag into the apartment and starts to close the door. "I'll...I'll see you then?"

"Yes. Of course." Thor's gotten the message. He turns his gaze to the floor and backs away. "I am sorry to disturb you."

"Have a good one."

The door shuts with an almighty CLUNK. Steve stands there for a moment. His face is still burning.

What the hell was that?

oOo


	6. Chapter 6

Thor has lived among Midgardians now for five of their years. He has come to understand many things about them - their laws, their culture, their magic (sometimes the lack thereof). But some things - and people - still elude him. Like Steve Rogers. Of all the Midgardians he's known, Steve is the most bewildering. He works closely with others, and yet keeps his distance; he's a leader, yet he keeps to himself. He's more of a contradiction than Loki. When they first met, Thor thought he had found a kindred spirit: after all, they were both strangers in Midgard. But Steve is a difficult man to get close to. Every move Thor made in one direction, he did the opposite. It became clear that they would play only by Steve's rules. Thor wasn't about to give up, though - Steve may not want a friend, but he could certainly use an ally.

-

The journey to the HYDRA stronghold is just as tedious the second time. While the rest of the team talks and laughs, Thor spends most of his time looking out the window. Gray-brown land gives way to featureless blue ocean, which gives way to vast stretches of green forest. Midgard is a beautiful realm, for all its flaws.

"Hey. May I join you?" Steve standing behind him, smiling politely. Thor returns the smile.

"You are always welcome, my friend!" he punctuates his sentence by patting the metal floor beside him. Steve folds his legs under him and sits. Thor sees his expression soften as he looks out the window. "It is beautiful, is it not?" he says quietly.

"Mm. If I had the time, I'd just sit here and draw it."

"All of it?"

"All of it. The ocean, the rivers, the forests." Steve catches Thor looking at him, and his ears go pink. "Sorry. Bucky always used to call me a hopeless romantic. Said we'd never get anything done if I drew as much as I wanted to."

Thor's laugh is a rumble deep in his chest. "It sounds as though your friend did not care for your talents."

"No. Never really saw the point."

"Pity."

They lapse into silence for a while. A lurch in the pit of their stomachs tells them the jet has begun to descend; minutes later, they pass through a bank of shallow clouds. Behind them, the rest of the team starts to prepare for landing. Suddenly Steve turns to Thor.

"Doyouwannagotolunchsometime?" he blurts out. Thor frowns. Is this some form of Midgardian slang? Steve shakes his head as though dislodging flies. "I'm sorry, I...do you want to go to lunch sometime? Or coffee, or...?" Thor just stares. To say this was unexpected is an understatement. Steve visibly backpedals. "I mean if you don't want to, that's fine, I just thought we started off on the wrong foot-"

A sudden knock on the wall startles them both. It's Tony, already wearing his Ironman suit. "If you two are done flirting, we're about to land." he smirks, and clanks away. And sure enough, JARVIS' voice pipes through the cabin moments later. Steve gets up and hurries off to find his shield, leaving his question unanswered.

-

The reports of continued HYDRA activity could mean one of two things: either there's another base in the area, or there was more to that stronghold than they thought. Either way, they don't want to attract attention; they'll have to get there on foot. As soon as the jet takes off, they do too, straight into the jungle.

The understory is warm and damp and stuffy, claustrophobic but brimming with life. Thor is fascinated. Asgard has only pine forests, nothing like this. He doesn't understand how his teammates can find it irritating; he would examine every leaf if he could. As it is, though, he barely has time to take in any of it. Romanov is leading the group, and she sets a brisk pace. By the time the sun dips down out of sight, they have likely covered ten miles or more. A fire is out of the question; instead, everyone breaks out the flashlights and begins to put up their tents.

"Looks like you and me got put together, Point Break. Hope you don't mind." says Tony once everything is set up. He ducks into the two-person tent without waiting for an answer. Thor tries not to feel disappointed. He'd been hoping for another chance to talk to Steve. But Steve, it appears, has been put with Natasha; they're already in their tent, silhouettes talking softly over a flashlight. A few yards away, Bruce is rustling around his own tent. He prefers to sleep alone. But none of them will get much sleep tonight - the jungle has come alive with the setting sun, and it's deafening. Creatures of all kinds call and scuttle through the trees; insects buzz and chatter; eyes shine in the flashlight beams. There's one particularly large pair of eyes, though, that makes him nervous...it's too big to be the creature Bruce calls a 'jaguar', and too bold. It's weaving through the trees in a very purposeful way, as though stalking something. Or someone. His hand twitches around Mjolnir's handle.

"Thor? Can I get a hand over here?" He looks up; Bruce is holding a tent pole in each hand and looking bewildered. Thor releases his grip on Mjolnir and ambles over to help. For someone so intelligent, Dr. Banner has difficulty with the simplest things sometimes. He absentmindedly holds onto the poles while Bruce hammers them into the ground.

"Hey!!" suddenly there's a commotion from the direction of his tent. His head whips around. A dark figure sprint into the forest, almost too fast to be human. In the fading light, he can just make out the sleek black of a HYDRA uniform.

"It's a scout, take him down!" someone yells.

Natasha is already after them, tearing through the undergrowth like it's nothing. Tony bursts out of the tent and into the air to head them off. The scout, realizing they're being pursued, dodges and weaves through the trees, but Natasha follows easily. Tony suddenly swoops down from the understory and fires a warning shot just ahead of them, making them swerve and slowing them down just enough; the next shot takes their feet out from under them. Natasha is on them just as they get back on their feet. A swift kick knocks them down again, and she has her gun out before they can recover. Then a shot rings through the forest. It's over. Tony lands beside her as she holsters her gun. He turns the motionless body over with one boot and peers at it.

"It's HYDRA, all right." he makes a face. "Not human, though. Looks like someone had kids with a really ugly lizard."

Steve, who's been standing at the ready with his shield, slings it onto his back. He's in full command mode now. "Well whatever he is, someone sent him out here, and they're going to come looking for him. You two take care of the body; we leave at dawn."

Tony and Natasha carry the lifeless scout away into the jungle. They return a while later, dirty and tired, and the Avengers sleep fitfully that night, if at all. That scout was a sign, maybe a message: HYDRA knows.

-

"There it is, ladies and gentlemen."

The stronghold, or what's left of it. The jungle has already begun to take it back; creepers and vines sneak through the rubble, violent-green shoots break through chunks of concrete. Rebar and support beams are the only things left standing. Tony folds his arms. "I dunno...unless HYDRA's started hiring bugs to do their dirty work, I don't see how this place is still active."

Natasha steps over a moss-covered girder and begins sifting through rubble. "That's because you aren't really looking, Stark. We've only scratched the surface."

"Icebergs, huh?"

"Just start searching."

So they search. And search. And keep searching. They search until they've overturned every piece which, considering that the stronghold was once a multi-story building, is quite a feat. Not to say that they don't find anything, of course. They find all kinds of things. Just not the one thing they're here for. Bruce finds a beautiful emerald-green snake napping in a cinderblock (harmless); Thor uncovers a nest of ants under a girder (not so harmless). But eventually, they've done all they can. You can only turn a rock over so many times.

"I think I know what Barton would be saying right about now.." Steve muses from his perch on the rubble. Natasha is the only one still looking. The rest of the Avengers are watching, skeptical but not quite willing to leave.

"That I should call it a day?" Natasha doesn't even look at him.

"Something like that."

"No, he wouldn't. We both know that." She tosses a cinderblock over her shoulder with one hand. It lands at Steve's feet; he picks it up, tosses it back, and it lands with a **clang** in a cluster of ferns.

...Wait. A clang? They stare at the ferns. They look harmless enough...Bruce is the first one to make a move. He stands up slowly, walks just as slowly to where the cinderblock landed. Some small critter sprints away through the undergrowth. He parts the ferns with both hands, then freezes.

"Guys? I think I found it."

Thor walks up behind him. There's a metal door set into the ground, so small as to be easily missed. There was a lock, it seems, but it's been destroyed - likely by the Hulk. Bruce is pulling on the handle; Thor grabs the other side and lifts. With a rusty screech, the door opens. It's at least a foot thick, and beneath it is a pitch-black tunnel, but there are lights just visible at the bottom. This has to be it.

"So now what?" says Tony.

Bruce takes a deep breath. "Now we go in."

oOo


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this part is pretty big, so I'm going to post it in two parts for chapter consistency.

It's a long way down. The ladder is cold and smooth, and the only light comes from far beneath their feet. Steve goes first this time; the forest sounds fade as he descends, replaced by thick silence. Twenty feet...twenty-five...thirty...a breath of cool air against his back. It smells sterile, clinical, like a doctor's office, but more forbidding. It makes his hair stand on end.

His feet hit solid ground. He takes a moment to get his bearings before looking around. A pair of shining steel-and-plexiglass airlock doors stare back; each one bears a keypad and a sizeable lock. He's gonna need help with this.

"Dr. Banner?" he calls into his headset, as loudly as he dares. "I could use a hand down here."

"On my way."

He waits while Bruce shimmies down the ladder. Aside from the locks, there doesn't seem to be much in the way of security here. Either HYDRA puts a lot of faith in their doors, or they're just arrogant. Probably the latter. Bruce slides down the last few feet to the ground behind him.

"I would've expected...more." he says as he looks around. "At least some guards, or a security camera."

Steve gestures to the doors. "That's the extent of our welcoming committee. Care to do the honors?"

"Gladly." Bruce steps up to the keyboard; after looking it over for a second he gets to work, fingers flying. This is one thing about the 21st century, Steve thinks, that he'll never get his head around. All his encounters with computers have involved more swearing and frustration than actual progress. Thank god for people like Dr. Banner.

"Hey Cap, when are you gonna let the rest of us join the party?" Stark's voice crackles through his headset. "We're gettin' eaten alive by mosquitoes up here."

"Soon as Dr. Banner gets the doors open. This is just the front porch." Steve replies.

"Well, tell him to hurry up."

"I can hear you too, you know." says Bruce into his own headset, and they hear Stark laugh. Bruce continues, more to himself this time, "actually, it's relatively easy...not too different from most other encryption codes I've seen. In fact-" the keypad makes a few affirmative-sounding beeps. Then, with a CLUNK like a loaded shotgun, the lock disengages and the door hisses open. He grins. "there you have it."

"Success?" Thor's voice this time.

"With the first one, yes. But if they're smart they'll have a different code for both doors." Bruce slips through to the second door with only a moment's hesitation.

Suddenly Steve is apprehensive. It's too easy. This is HYDRA; there should have at least been a booby trap by now. But then, any traps or security systems were probably disabled when the rest of the outpost was destroyed...he brushes the feeling aside. You're getting paranoid, Rogers.

"...Done." the second door unlocks and opens. Another waft of cool air fills the chamber, laden with the same doctor's-office smell Steve got a whiff of earlier. His hackles go right back up, and he can tell Bruce feels the same. He ignores it, though, and sounds the all-clear. Footsteps start coming down the ladder. He straps his shield onto his arm in the meantime. Bruce goes very quiet; he has his own shields to put up.

Stark is, predictably, the first one down. He hits the floor with a heavy CLANG, glances around, and immediately looks disappointed. But he takes his place by Steve all the same as they wait for the others. Thor is next, climbing carefully down rung-by-rung; then Natasha, who doesn't bother with the rungs at all and just slides down. Soon they're all assembled, staring into the cool darkness beyond the doorway. It's all very heroic. Until Stark elbows Thor and says, "Dare you to go first."

They all roll their eyes - that's about all you can do with Stark - and in they go.

oOo

Turns out, the darkness is mostly hallway. It's lined with doors, but all of them lead to disappointingly normal offices.

Then they come to the end of the hall; the door there is a huge iron monstrosity with yet another keypad front-and-center. This one takes a lot more work on Bruce's part. But when he finally does get it open, they all have to catch their breath: this is what they came here for. A dimly-lit laboratory, all metal and control panels and tunnels leading god-knows-where. It's a long, narrow room; almost half of it is taken up by tall glass pods, standing in rows as far as they can see. The insides of the pods are fogged up like windows on a cold day. The only light in the room comes from panels on the opposite wall. And it's utterly still. The Avengers stand in the doorway with weapons drawn for a good two minutes, just waiting. All their instincts are telling them that there should be something happening now. Security going haywire, HYDRA agents coming out of the woodwork, any number of things. But nothing happens. The place is abandoned.

No...it's too clean for that. There are no clipboards or papers left on tables, nothing out of place. It's not even dusty.

"Has anyone even been in here before us...?" Natasha wonders aloud. Apparently they're all thinking the same thing. She lowers her gun.

Thor takes one tentative step into the room, then another. "I do not believe so."

"It's packed with machines, though. Someone would have to maintain all of them." says Steve.

"Not just machines." Bruce speaks up suddenly from the foot of one of the pods. "These are specimen tanks. There's some kind of experiment going on." he reaches out and rubs the glass with his sleeve. A patch of fog wipes away. Behind it, suspended in murky liquid and just barely illuminated by the wall panels, is an enormous, vaguely humanoid foot. From toe to heel it's at least as long as Bruce's forearm. He lets out a slow breath that's equal parts horror and awe. "They're engineering some kind of life-form."

"Wouldn't something like that require...some kind of supervision, at least?"

"Not necessarily." says Bruce, his eyes shining. "It's on autopilot. From what I can tell, it's being run by an off-site computer that controls the whole system."

Everyone looks around. Only Bruce would be excited about this. Natasha touches one of the pods. "Even the experiments?"

"Even the experiments. It can monitor them all continuously, and if even one shows any abnormality it gets shut down. It's brilliant."

"Am I the only one who's creeped out by this?" Tony edges away from the pods.

Steve rolls his eyes. "Remind me again, Stark- who was it that built an artificial intelligence which now controls an entire company?"

"That's different."

"Is it really?"

"The question is," Natasha interrupts, "how do we shut it down?"

Bruce thinks for a moment. "If it's all automated, that shouldn't be too hard...we'd just have to find the main power source."

"And where would that be?" there are so many passageways branching off from this room alone; there could be hundreds more.

"That I don't know."

"I vote we split up." says Natasha. "We'll cover more ground, and we can get out of here sooner."

"Agreed." Steve adjusts his shield. This is a role he's comfortable with. "Stark, Banner, you take those; Romanov, Thor and I will go this way. Let us know what you find."

The tunnels are cold and dimly-lit. It feels...creepy, for lack of a better word. Like going into your basement with the lights off. They walk slowly. This place is a labyrinth - twists and turns and dead ends everywhere. There are rooms every few hundred yards on either side; storage rooms filled with crates and equipment, and small laboratories with more experiment pods. Some look like holding cells...that doesn't bear thinking about. Down here, even the computer sounds are muffled. Minutes pass with nothing to fill them, save for their own footsteps. Suddenly Stark's voice crackles through their headsets, making them jump.

"Stark here. I think we found something."

"What have you found?" Thor rumbles back.

"Some sort of terminal." Bruce's voice. A few mechanical sounds filter through the line. "I might be able to shut things down from here..." he trails off into muttering.

"Alright. Keep us appraised." Steve says absently. There's a light coming from the end of the hall, if he can just-

"...Oh."

It takes a split second to process the horror in Bruce's voice. Then everything goes to hell.

" **UNAUTHORIZED ENTRY DETECTED. INITIATING LOCKDOWN.** " a calm computerized voice blasts through the tunnel. Before they can react, the lights go out, throwing the already-dim tunnel into complete darkness.

"Banner-!" someone shouts.

"Okay, okay, I think I can bypass this system, just sit tight-" more mechanical sounds; a squawk from the computer. "Damn. It's locking me out."

"Well, now HYDRA definitely knows we're here." says Natasha.

As if to prove her point, the computerized voice speaks again. " **WARNING: FURTHER TAMPERING WILL RESULT IN SECURITY SYSTEM ACTIVATION.** "

"Yeah, I'd rather not find out what that means." Steve hisses. He looks around, eyes straining in the darkness. They don't have many options now. "Banner, please tell me you're making some progress over there."

"I'm trying," even his voice is tense. "This is a smart system. If I didn't know better, I'd say it was anticipating my actions. It's already locked us in and-"

CLUNK.

"Now what??"

CLUNK. CLUNK. CLUNK.

The sound comes from all around them. An acrid chemical smell fills the tunnel.

"Dr. Banner, any chance you could get us some light?"

"Working on it."

The smell gets stronger. It's sour and musty and maybe the darkness is playing tricks on them, but there are footsteps too. Soft ones, but definitely there. The lights flicker.

"Any time now, Banner!"

"Almost got it, just a moment-"

"We don't have a moment!"

A row of turquoise baseboard lights blink on. Not much, but at least it's something. It illuminates the faces of the Avengers, standing with weapons drawn - and the cause of the chemical smell. It's humanoid, damp, and scaly, curled up up small a few yards from a laboratory door. Despite the fact that it's almost Thor-sized, it looks for all the world like a frightened child. The Avengers stare.

"That's it?" Thor sounds almost disappointed.

"So it would seem." Natasha lowers her gun, but doesn't lock it. The creature curls up tighter and whimpers. She hesitates. Then curiosity seems to get the better of her and she crouches down, her free hand outstretched. "Hey." she says, as though to an animal or small child. "It's alright, we aren't going to hurt you."

"Natasha, what are you doing??" Steve hisses. "That thing is HYDRA, we don't know its intentions!"

"Exactly." She hisses back. Then, to the creature again: "Come on, it's okay." she clicks her fingers. This seems to get its attention; it looks up. An almost-too-big head lolls on its scrawny neck as it goggles at them. It looks...unfinished. Fetal, almost. Certainly not healthy. Veins show through transluscent skin and half-formed scales, and its eyes are huge and snake-like. Its mouth opens and shuts with each breath, making a damp, wheezy sound. The creature uncurls further to reveal humanoid limbs with elongated hands and feet. And down its back, protruding like a second spine, is a column of metal and wires. Lights blink here and there. A pair of thick cables run from the column back to a nearby laboratory door.

"What a pitiful creature." mutters Thor, looking it up and down.

Natasha nods. "What do we do with it?"

"I...don't know. I doubt it's going to live very long." says Steve. The creature wheezes as if to prove his point. It looks so helpless, though, they can't just leave it. Can they? He edges toward it, trying his best to look nonthreatening. "Hey, little guy. Come here, it's okay."

The thing cocks its head. Slowly, deliberately, it plants its hands and feet and creeps forward. Once it reaches the end of the cables it stops, and cranes its neck instead. Its eyes focus, first on Steve, then Natasha. Neither one moves a muscle.

And then something clicks. Its pupils narrow to slits; its whole demeanor changes so fast that Steve and Natasha can barely react. The creature's mouth opens in a silent roar, and it rears up and lunges. Claws scrabble at their boots as it tries to gain purchase on the slick floor. The cables jerk loose and the creature's breathing turns into labored gasps. Thor pulls Steve and Natasha to their feet; Steve pulls back and throws his shield as hard as he can, barely even aiming. It clangs against the cables and they snap off, slamming the creature to the ground with its own momentum. The lights along its back go out, then it lets out one last wet sigh and falls still.

"-er to Captain Rogers, are you okay over there?" their headsets burst into life. Steve takes a deep breath or two before answering.

"We are now. But we found out what was in those pods." he nudges the creature with his toe. One glassy eye stares back at him. "We need to shut this thing down, fast."

oOo

**Author's Note:**

> If you like the story so far, please leave a comment- I'd love to hear from you!


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